Knights around the table
by samberly
Summary: After losing to the enemy, the knight of blood Karkat Vantas, Dave strider is taken as a prisoner to the kingdom of Alternia to be sold as a slave. Before they reach Karkats home land the blood thirsty warrior starts to blossom desires for the fellow Knight he never thought possible. Their story spirals into a mist of war and love, how will the pair survive?M for yaoi and cursing
1. I should have stayed in bed

Well... Here it is the long written AU I have been working on, chapter one to be exact.

Disclaimer: yeah so uhhh Sam here doesn't own any of us over here or the story, just this shitty fan-fiction *Dave says sourly*

D-dave. I tried so hard. Don't be mean! ANY WHO ON WITH THE SHOW! PLEASE REVIEW AND COMMENT

Edit: I have employed the help of my younger more grammatically and spelling incline sister to aid in my expedition of this tale.

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Dave Strider turned around in a whirl of a red flowing cape that engulfed the enemies around him in a hurricane of certain demise. In his hand he held a broken metal sword that gleamed like the sun to fend off the next attacker on his small party. Only five remained from the original 1,000 that had marched into battle under his command to destroy the opposing force that threatened their land. They called him the Knight of Time for his ability to win battles within an hour of the beginning fight. This title had earned him a reputation throughout the land as one of the greatest heroes to ever live, but even with his reputation in place without sufficient troops the battle was pointless. They sent him with only 1,000 soldiers up against an army of 5,000 from the kingdom of Alternia; it was an instant slaughter for many of his men. When others fled he didn't stop them, there was no point to send anymore to an early grave.

Out of the ranks of the enemy troops stepped a man with dark gray skin wearing unmistakable knight armor that resembled Dave's own but possessed a different vibe that could be felt by those around the deadly man. Both suits of armor were heavily enforced with fine metals on the arms and shoulders along with sturdy silver boots encasing each knight's feet. Included in the attire, the two wore with pride fine capes made of exquisite material to show their titles and sturdy steel chain mail to protect their towering figures. Although as similar as the two were there was still a difference in just the armor that changed the feel of control over the men they each took along in battle. Dave wore a simple black tunic that contrasted his silvery chain mail that overlapped his torso and a warming red cape that didn't deter but welcomed those who were willing to fight for him, similar to that of a fire burning in a home. Karkat Vantas on the other hand wore a light brown tunic that made the metallic chain mail shine even brighter against his ashen skin, showing off the power of his simple shield against any lethal weapon he faced. His cape was the color of blood, dark and dreadful. The color seemed to ooze from every thread of the worn fabric and predict the future of his enemies when they chose to set foot in his range of fire. Both wore a symbol on their chest, it was customary for knights to present their titles to others in hopes of intimidating their soon to be foe. Dave's tunic was imprinted with a red gear that stood for clockwork, the symbol for the Knight of Time. Karkat's light brown tunic was stamped with a bleeding wound the same blood red as his cape, the symbol for the Knight of Blood. He acquired the name after a very deadly war where he left every single opponent lying dead in a pool of their own blood, staining the earth with a similar color. Legend has it that the water supply in the neighboring town was tainted with their blood for months. Some even say he enjoyed their pain, to see their blood washed along the lands for years after his enemies demise.

Dave had tried to avoid contact with the menacing troll, fearing the safety of his men. Unfortunately here he stood, in front of Dave with a scythe poised and a grin plastered on his smug face that seemed to turn Dave's stomach in fear, disgust, and a little anger.  
"My, my, I've always wanted the pleasure of meeting the Knight of Time, but I never thought it would happen under these circumstances. Funny isn't it?" Karkat remarked flashing Dave a smirk. The clad warrior took a step closer but had to quickly jump back as Dave stepped forward and sent of a slice from his broken sword (he had a bad habit of breaking every sword put into his hands) to the knight's abdomen in hopes of deterring him from Dave's remaining men. Karkat just laughed and twirled the blood covered scythe in the air.  
"You are a lot prettier than I expected I will admit, shame we couldn't be friends."  
Dave just snarled at the advancing knight in a menacing tone "Bite me, bastard". Karkat looked at Dave for a moment but in the blink of an eye his face cracked and... the bastard began laughing! "Oh my, no wonder you are famous around here. Any general with half his wits would be scared senseless of the mere presence of you but, unlike them" At this Karkat quickly grabbed Dave by the chin and yelled in his face, "I AM NOT LIKE THE REST!" Dave didn't move, his face never showing any emotion, his red eyes piercing into the knight's heart in search of a way out but finding no such path.

The Knight of Time knew he had lost, but there still had to be a way. He had to save the last men who stood by his side till the end. "Listen, we both know I would rather die than be taken by some halfwit warrior like yourself but if you let these men go,"  
Dave gestured towards the warriors behind him as best he could with a hand on his chin, "I will come willingly."  
Karkat seemed to ponder the offer for a minute but a crazed smile broke the silence that had dawned on the party of warriors. "You have yourself a deal _peasant_" the last word rolled off his tongue and sent shivers down Dave's spine; he did not like this guy at all.  
Pointing towards a lower level soldier, Karkat beckoned said man over to the circle of five men from Dave's original 1,000 troops, "Make sure these men get back to their home town safely."Karkat said, his hand never faltering from Dave's chin and his smile still was plastered on his face.

The man bowed and ushered the confused men out towards the road they had marched on only hours before. Dave watched them go and sighed in relief but was quickly choking back his sigh as his throat was crushed under the Knight of Blood's grip, "Aren't you the selfless one? It really is a pity you ended up like this, you were probably well loved in your home town."

The Knight of Time said nothing but just glared as Karkat summoned another man over, "Bind the prisoner's hands and have him tied to the post inside my tent. I don't quite trust a man of such a free spirit."

"Free spirit my ass" Dave said under his breath as Karkat walked away and was greeted by a hard slap to the face.

"You better learn your place real quick, keep that smart mouth to yourself or I might just have to leave you here to rot."

Dave huffed and glared back at the mad man "LIKE I GIVE A DAMN!"

Instead of the usual effect his booming voice had on people Karkat just began to laugh, a high pitched laugh of someone who was on the brink of insanity that made Dave grit his teeth," How about your friends there? Will you feel the same for them? Leaving them to my mercy?"

This shut up the knight quickly, he didn't speak as the lower ranked man dragged him away towards the head knight's tent. The looming presence of his sad fate following him the whole way.  
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	2. Is this man for real?

So here it is. Part two AND OH MY GOD I LOVE YOU ALL ONLY ONE DAY AND SO MANY PEOPLE HAVE READ IT I CAN BURST WITH JOY. Why is read such a weird word? Anywho here you go kiddies! Enjoy these too. Hehehe I know I do

Dave: ...why am I so... ukesih!

Me: Because silly! Those men died for you!

Dave:... I hate you for finding my weakness

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Dave grunted as his bindings were tied tightly around a wooden pole that was the main support of Karkat's tent. The man pulled tighter on the restraints but flinched as he saw tiny crimson droplets of blood begin to drip from the Knight of Time's wrists. The lower ranked soldier made a move to loosen the rope bindings but was cut short as Karkat strided into the tent with a smile plastered on his face that turned Dave's stomach in a quick knot of hatred. Looking down to see the droplets of blood that stained the white fur that littered the tent floor he spoke with a tone of pure bliss," Good work my man. Now go and leave me to these", the grin he wore now began to show the sharp canines the knight of blood possessed, "serious matters." The soldier bowed and hastily left his leader's dwellings to leave the crazed man staring down at the hero who just stared back, expressionless, waiting for his fate to commence in the sickening downward spiral.

The stare down continued until Dave became rather uneasy under those strangely yellow piercing eyes and opted instead to take in the area in which he resided for the time being. The tent itself was made of a simple wool that was slicked with some material to make it capable of handling every element of war. Inside was the impressive part though. Dave had never really been one to take in the finer things that leadership positions had to offer, always opting to have a simple tent similar in size and design to the ones the men of his army were given in hopes to earn their trust, but Karkat was different. The floor was littered with exotic furs and pelts probably to show the success of hunts he had partaken in before. Along with the furs and pelts weapons of all kinds littered the floor leaving almost no room to walk. Dave spotted a few bows and at least 2 quivers of arrows, 5 swords, and an ax or two. Dave smiled to himself at the thought that Karkat, the hero who left no man alive, was secretly very paranoid. Nothing else really caught the Knight of Time's eye except for some basic maps and parts of various suits of armor. Turning back to look at the owner of the tent he noticed his smile had faded away to a look of pure curiosity.

Karkat continued to look at him curiously and finally after a long silence he spoke in a whisper, "Why? You aren't even trying to escape, or kill yourself. Why? I noticed the knife that you have slipped under your sleeve, but you don't use it. You could have easily smashed your skull against the wooden post behind you but you don't. Why? We both know you want to." Dave smiled inwardly; maybe this guy wasn't as much of an idiot as he thought.

"Because my men haven't reached home yet and if I die, what will happen to my kingdom?" The Knight of Blood seemed to have a hard time comprehending what Dave said.

"My, you are a different one, aren't you?" as he said this Dave felt a sharp pain in his left cheek as Karkat's boot connected with his face. "It sickens me"

"Kill me then. Just end it if I sicken you so much." Dave said in a calm and collected tone much to the Knight of Blood's surprise since his face was already starting to redden from the impact, adding to Karkat's enjoyment. He crouched down so he was level with Dave's face and slowly lifted a dagger he had pulled out from his pocket and began to drag it along the pale skin of Dave's neck leaving a trail of red behind.

"Now what fun would that be?" Karkat sneered. Dave gasped as the cool metal of the deadly weapon passed over his throat but other than that made no emotion or response to the deadly threat in front of him. Karkat stood up in anger and slashed the blade across the Knight of Time's unmarked cheek leaving a deep gash that almost instantly began gushing blood on to his face, it complimenting the bruise on his other cheek beautifully. Karkat smiled, showing his sharp teeth in pure delight as he swiped a finger along the gash and touching it to his mouth for a taste, "Hmmmm, much better than any other blood I have tasted." Dave scowled at his words but pushed the emotion away, he had to give this freak no satisfaction in getting a reaction from him and plastered his stoic face on to face the crazed man. "*sigh* This is going to be harder than I thought. Oh well I love a good fight." With that Karkat happily walked over to a pile of furs that seemed to be higher than the others and laid down on them with a content sigh, choosing to sprawl out along the soft animal pelts and taking up what space was left. "Wait till morning, and we will be heading back to Alternia, my kingdom. There we will decide what to do with you." As he said this the man closed his eyes and fell into a surprising quick and deep sleep leaving Dave to worrying about the people he had left home and what lay ahead for him on this rocky journey he had found himself on.


	3. That boot hurt!

Very short part today guys but I can compensate cuz tomorrow will be a rather long part :3333 thank you to all of you who are interested and I absolutely looooovvvvveeeeee feedback. Even negative so ye anyway without further ado (before dave shows up)

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Screaming echoed through the encased wool tent waking Karkat from a dreamless sleep he had so long ago adapted to deal with his love for death and the opposing of his conscious. As he groggily looked around he noticed Dave trashing about in his binds screaming curses and insults in his sleep to a figure that haunted his dreams. The knight of blood stood up to shut up his enemy but stopped in his tracks when he heard him mumbling in desperation, "Let them go and I will work for you, just let them go." Karkat waited a minute or so but began to walk up to the man tied to his wooden post to see that he had fallen back into a slumber not troubled by the horrible dreams. "I guess I won't wake him for now, but he will be punished later for waking me." Karkat grumbled as he walked over to a set of maps that were old and ripped. As karkat looked at the documents his mind began to wander_, now that I think about it I have never heard about the reason why Dave actually became a warrior. Most heroes have their reason well know. After all almost everyone knows I became a knight to avenge my town but... why him?_ Karkat continued to roll over these thoughts in his head until he heard a soft grunt come from the slumped over figure behind him.

"Ah the peasant awakes. How nice, tell me did you sleep well?" Karkat said turning around, slipping his menacing grin on to greet the man who had just awoken. Dave in return just let out another soft grunt and turned his head the other way to look at the opposite wall, staring intently at the wool coating the tent. Karkat growled low in his throat and stepped forward to grab the knight of time by the jaw and turn the body part so Dave was forced to stare into his enraged eyes," You better learn real quick slime that you look at me when I talk to you, and you better start listening to me." Karkat looked carefully into Dave's deep red mutant eyes for a reaction to his words, a spark of understanding, but nothing showed. Nothing but a dulled boredom and slight irritation at having his chin crushed. "Hmph, who in their right mind would buy you with that attitude I don't know." Karkat grumbled as he turned back and headed out of the tent into the morning sun. The day had just started and already a warm summer breeze was rolling across the plains of the makeshift camp the warriors had made for the night. The sun was just peeking over the mountains in the distance and somewhere not far off you could hear the sound of rushing water, the only thing obstructing the view was down in a small valley over to the west was the sight of hundreds of corpses piled up and already starting to decay. Karkat smiled, he had always loved the view of his dead enemies, but there was slowly growing to be one exception. Dave was proving more amusing than Karkat had ever hoped and as the morning swept Karkat into sweat bliss he mulled over the possibilities his new toy could hold for the blood-thirsty ruler.


	4. Am i catching a cold? or love?

Well from what I have seen so far, there is actually a fair amount of people enjoying this story *blushes* thank you so much you beautiful creatures! this is where we are starting to get a little FIESTY. *cough*

Dave: sam... what did you do?

Me: lalalallala can't hear youlalallalala

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It was a long trek to get back to Alternia and karkat was bored senseless as his horse galloped at a slow steady pace to keep up with the sluggish pace the men had set on their way back towards their land. He rode about a mile behind the men to watch for deserters, and keep the prisoner in tow at his own pace, confident enough in his officers to bring the men to where they were supposed to. Dave was still tied by the wrists in a tight, wounding knot, but now the length of rope didn't simply stop at his wrist but continued on its woven path to be tied along the harness of the horse karkat rode on, like a dog being pulled on a leash. The morning sun beat down with the heat of the summer day and begin to take its toll on Dave who was still rapped in metal armor, encasing him in the scorching veil of heat. Karkat knew the men had taken a different route but he enjoyed watching Dave struggle and squirm and chose to take a way that would guarantee no stopping or simple walk but rather a jagged path of rocks and twigs that kept the warrior on his toes.

They continued along well into the afternoon when karkat finally stopped, knowing his men about this time would be stopping for camp and replenishing their energy after a tiresome hike. He slid off his horse gracefully and turned to hear the slight panting of Dave in he tried to regain his breath from the long trek across the plains. The knight of blood smiled imagining the man in front of him in the likeness of a dog and quietly laughed to himself as he proceeded to untie the rope that bound Dave's hands letting it slip down to expose his cut and raw hands that had begun to infect.

Dave moved his hands to rub at the exposed wounds but grimaced as he felt the blood trickle down his arm to join the grassy floor, staining the lush green with a deep red that Karkat so loved to see. "My, my you must be tiered, that armor must be weighing heavy on you too. How about you take it off and we will tend to your wounds together." Dave glared at the knight of blood with obvious suspicion but proceeded to remove his heavy armor. He started with his metal shoulder pads and continued down until he managed to pry off his silver boots so that he was standing in a simple tunic that was drenched with sweat. Karkat took note of how through the wet fabric you could see the defined muscles of a warrior but also noticed how here and there the picture was... Cut. Like some took a beautiful painting and chose to cut sharp gashes in different places than attempt sew the master piece back together. The most prominent of the marks was a long faded scar showing along the side of Dave's neck and snaking itself down into his red tunic.

Karkat carefully lifted up Dave's arm so his wrist was in front of the knight of bloods face, smiling at the exposed flesh, "hmmm. This is deeper than I thought. We will have to clean it up first though before we can patch it up" Dave went to move his hand away so he could wipe the blood away from his arm but was stopped in his movement as the warm tongue of karkat dragged along his pale skin, capturing the red blood that was everywhere. Dave was shocked for a minute but he quickly regained his senses and pulled his arm away with a grunt. He moved away from karkat to pick up a stay fern, using it to clean up his stained skin, a quiet red blush slowly creeping up his too pale skin.

Karkat smiled and licked a stray droplet of blood from his lips. It was different than anything he had ever tasted before, especially blood, which he wasn't uncommon to. It was at first tangy with the distinguishing texture of blood but underneath was the prominent taste of something more. Something karkat wanted and he always got what he wanted. Maybe keeping this knight around for a while wouldn't be so bad; after all he was so entertaining to begin with and the knight of blood had only had him under his wing for 2 days. Karkat pointed his gaze to see that Dave had made quick work of taking parts of his dampened sleeves and dipping them in the stream the horse was drinking from. After he washed the sweat off he picked up a nearby leaf from a tree and rubbed in along the cut continuing to wrap the dampened cloth along his wrists. " hmm. You are rather good at this aren't you?" Dave didn't respond. He had barely said a word since he was captured and didn't plan to change that, instead he turned toward the horse and began to pet it, cooing as it already took a liking to the warrior.

He felt a scowl aimed at him but he just grinned and continued petting the horse, that is until he felt a sharp pain in between his shoulder blades and a hand forcefully push him to the ground. Dave tried to turn his head to meet Karkat's eyes but was painfully turned back with a strong hand and an animalistic growl, "You better learn real fast that if you don't listen to me I'm going to have to punish you." As karkat said these words he felt a sharp twinge in his arm and the familiar feeling of his skin being pierced and when he looked down the blood thirsty warrior was greeted with Dave's blood red eyes. A threatening gleam caressed the crimson orbs and sent a chill of sweet fear down Karkat's back.

"So what is this then MASTER" the knight of time said in anger. Karkat stared at him for a second and Dave was sure he would be feeling more pain soon but instead he got an ecstatic smile and a small push as Karkat stood up in a happy twirl.

"You finally reacted! Oh I was getting worried I would have to resort to burning down your village to get some entertainment out of you!" The knight of blood continued to spin in a happy circle, at least until he was knocked face first into the ground and pinned there as he heard the enraged growls of Dave strider above him. Attempting to right himself proved futile as all he got for his efforts a bite to the shoulder and a growl of warning.

"Threaten me all you want but if you ever hurt the people I love I will personally make sure to drain all the oh so precious blood right out of your body." Karkat frowned, that was not the reaction he expected and it had him a little stunned but more importantly, why did he feel bad for making Dave so angry? He was his prisoner? He was probably just angry because the damned Dave had caught him off guard...but still, he had to wonder.

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Please comment pwease!


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